Greetings from East Mt. Airy Neighbors! I love this time of year in this neighborhood!

I love turning a corner and being surprised by a brilliant vista of red and orange and yellow. All the more beautiful because it’ll be gone so soon.

But October’s certainly going out with a bang!

The giant storm that’s predicted for Sunday evening/Monday/Tuesday will cause considerable difficulty for everyone, especially if there are power outages and downed electric lines. Mayor Nutter has declared a state of emergency from 5 PM today through Tuesday. Check on elderly or home-bound neighbors. Do not go near downed electric lines; they’ll be live, even if there’s an outage. Keep your pets safe indoors.

Ahead of the storm, SEPTA has announced the suspension of ALL service at the end of Sunday’s schedules (shortly after midnight),through Monday. Service will resume as soon as conditions allow.

Many schools have already announced they’ll be closed on Monday (some on Tuesday as well). Check any of the local TV and radio stations’ websites for updates, which are being posted regularly.

Here are some phone numbers that might come in handy:

In a police or fire emergency, call 911.

To report a power outage, call PECO at 1-800-841-4141

If you smell gas, call PGW at 215-235-1212.

To get information or report a non-emergency problem, the City’s 311 call center will be operating.

Keep those flashlights handy……….

Following the storm, we’ll have to deal with another issue …….what to do with all those leaves.

The City’s curbside bagged leaf collection starts on November 5thand continues through December 14th. The leaves will be collected for recycling/mulching on your regular trash day, so put them next to your trash and recycling containers. Leaves will not be recycled unless they are in biodegradable brown paper bags; leaves in plastic bags will be trashed. These paper bags are widely available at grocery and hardware stores.

Please do not put other materials (like branches, paper, etc.) in the same bags as the leaves.

PGW has issued an announcement about upcoming work in theneighborhood. The projects that will most impact East Mt. Airy will involve the 6900 block of Germantown Ave. and the unit block of Gorgas Lane.

This work, which will start in early November, is necessary to replace old gas pipelines. PGW promises to try to limit noise and other disruptions. For more info, go to www.pgworks.com/worksites

The Presidential election is almost here. We urge you to get out and vote! You may be asked to show a photo ID, but it is not required in order to vote in this election. (It may be at some time in the future, but not this time.)

For a different sort of vote, we invite you to the annual “Cookin’ With WHO?”chef’s competition on November 8th, from 6:30 till 8:30, in the Brossman Center on the campus of the Lutheran Theological Seminary (7301 Germantown Ave.). Community chefs representing 3 Mt. Airy community nonprofits, (EMAN, Neighborhood Interfaith Movement, Lutheran Seminary), will present favorite recipes for tasting. Councilwoman Cindy Bass, representing the entire community, will be among the chefs vying for your vote. EMAN’s stellar group is: EMAN President Kent Reichert, MAUSA’s Anuj Gupta and sports radio host “Phil From Mt. Airy” Allen. (You may also know Phil from Mt. Airy Baseball.) I’ve seen the recipes, and you will not leave hungry!

Tickets are $50, (available at the event website, www.Ltsp.edu/cookinwithwho, or call 215-248-7339), and the proceeds will directly support the programs of the 3 presenting institutions. You may also support your favorite chef by going to the event website and donating in his/her name. Click on “Support a Chef”; these donations add to the votes the chef gets!

Our live/silent auction will feature some great items. Just a few examples: An apartment in Barcelona for 2 weeks…………2nd row tickets to a Sixers v. Rockets game (including parking)………….a harp concert (great for weddings)………………an electrical safety inspection of your home by Electrical Wizardry……………gift certificates to many of our wonderful local restaurants (Bacio, Earth Bread + Brewery, and more)……………a tile from Karen Singer Tileworks………..theater tickets……………. original art photographs………..home decorating pieces………………and much more! (We are fortunate to have generous and supportive businesses, artists and organizations in Mt. Airy.)

Mt. Airy’s Got Talent! And an evening of entertainment highlighting that will take place on Friday, 11/16th at 7 PM, at St.Michael’sLutheran Church (6671 Germantown Ave.) The theme this year will be”Gratitude For Our Gifts”. If you’d like to participate, prepare a piece that reflects that theme and contact Kathryn Mariani by 11/5th, at 215-380-0842 or kathrynmariani@aol.com

Proceeds from the event will help support the Arts and Literacy Program at Emlen School; the goal is $1,000.

The community is invited to attend a memorial service on Tuesday, October 30th (at 6 PM) for Rev. Dr. Andrew “Jack” White, a popular and highly-regarded member of the Lutheran Theological Seminary family, who was also a valued community activist in East Mt. Airy. He served on our Board of Directors for several years, and always acted out of strong moral convictions about peace, justice and racial equality.

The service will be led by Rev. Katie Day in the Schaffer-Ashmead Chapel at the Seminary (7301 Germantown Ave.). Light refreshments will be served following the service.

If you have unwanted electronics at your home or business, bring them to a WeirdWaste Day on Saturday, 11/10th, for responsible recycling. The collection will be on the parking lot of the Norwood Academy Campus, 8891 Germantown Ave., from 1 – 4 PM. The event is sponsored by GRinCH (Green In Chestnut Hill). A donation of $10 – $20 is suggested; funds will support GRinCH’s Green Warrior Youth Grant program.

After you’ve gotten those electronics out of your space, what will you do with the rest of your “trash”? Mt. Airy Art Garage(MAAG) is having a “How to Create Art out of Refuse” workshop on 11/11, as part of the Renewed Urban Studio Tent (RUST). Learn to think about recycling in a whole new way — the fun starts at 10 AM at MAAG (11 W. Mt. Airy Ave.) The fee is $10.

Let me end on an up note…….

On Friday, 10/19th , there was a celebratory mood at Pleasant Playground at the official groundbreaking ceremony for much-neededrenovations. Several local officials and many near neighbors worked for years to make this happen.

Our thanks to former City Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, State Representative Cherelle Parker, State Senator LeAnna Washington and current Councilwoman Cindy Bass for their efforts. It’s nice to see some of our tax dollars staying in the neighborhood!

Thanks also to local residents and community leaders for their efforts. To name just a few: Elvira Evans, Robert and Starr Dixon, Carla Bell, Brenda Baptist, Dan Muroff and Vernon Price. Their dedication to this project made it happen.

The next EMAN Community/Board meeting will be on Tuesday evening, November13th at 7:30, in the EMAN Office (Wiedemann Building, LTSP Campus, 7301 Germantown Ave.). Please note that it’s postponed from the usual first Tuesday because of the election.

You are welcome at any of our public meetings, and of course, we want you to become an EMAN member!